HONOLULU (KHON2) — It’s a scam Honolulu police officials have been warning Hawaii residents about since early April. Scammers have been impersonating police officers, sheriffs, and Judiciary employees to steal money from the public, but this Mānoa resident didn’t fall for it.
Mānoa resident Jody Mishan experienced a close call with a scammer who claimed to be a lieutenant at the Honolulu Police Department.
Like other reported calls, the “lieutenant” claimed a bench warrant for Mishan’s arrest due to her failure to show up for jury duty.
According to Mishan, the scammer talked to her with a stern voice and emphasized the importance of the call.
“It was scary. He was very convincing,” said Mishan.
Before falling for the scammer’s ploy, Mishan grabbed her computer and searched “jury duty bench warrant scam in Hawaii.” In addition, reports said Mishan searched the name of the “officer” she was on the phone with but could not find it in the Honolulu Police Department staff directory.
Mishan confronted the scam caller, where he then “offered to transfer her to his ‘captain.’” After being unable to find the name of the captain of the directory, the caller finally hung up.
“I worry about people with cognitive impairment falling victim to these scams. Many older adults may not have access to a computer, or they may live alone and believe what the scammers are saying,” expressed Mishan.
Anyone who experiences this call is advised to hang up immediately. Officials said the public should not answer any questions or press numbers they may be asked to press.
The U.S. Judiciary said they will never contact you via call or email regarding bench warrants related to jury duty. All communication regarding jury service is conducted via U.S. mail.
“Anyone can be a victim. Jody did exactly the right thing by searching for information independently of what the scammers were feeding her. But not everyone is by a computer when scammers call and fear of being arrested can easily lead you to keep talking rather than hanging up on someone,” explained AARP Hawai`i state director, Keali`i Lopez.
Visit the AARP Fraud Watch for more information or call the AARP Fraud Watch network hotline at (877) 908-3360.